Robert Smithson

Robert Smithson (1938-1973) is one of the best-known representatives of Land Art. His site-specific landscape sculptures have attracted international attention and his works have influenced entire generations of contemporary artists. After the artist died in a tragic plane crash at the age of just 35, he himself became a legend. In his short but productive life, he produced paintings, drawings, sculptures, earthworks/landscape sculptures, films, videos and texts. In 1963, Smithson married the artist Nancy Holt (1938-2014), who completed some of his works. His best-known work is the ‘Spiral Jetty’, created in Utah in 1970, which stretches 460 metres straight into the Great Salt Lake. In addition to his artistic work, Smithson was particularly concerned with questions of art theory, including ‘sites’ (works in a very specific location) and ‘nonsites’ (works for arbitrary locations such as galleries and exhibition spaces).

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The Foundation | Holt/Smithson Foundation (holtsmithsonfoundation.org)